Chalet Lac Champlain in the Philipsburg Bird Sanctuary

This chalet is located near by the Lake Champlain, a few meters away from the American border in the dead of the Philipsburg Bird Sanctuary.

The landscape is composed of two plateaus separated by a 10 meters sheer cliff and a gently sloping access to the lake; a rare privilege for this area.

This landform offers a wonderful sight line to the west facing this vast lake. This three storey wooden cottage is enrol as one observation post the in the natural landscape. The vertical circulation in the chalet creates views both on cliff, from which the building is almost lean against, as well as the lake; thinly veiled by tree trunks. The rooms are generously glazed. Two generous terraces on south side create a space where the occupants may live and pursue contemplation of the natural scene. Those terraces also induce segmentation of the volumes.

This play in the volume is accentuated by the recced circulation vertical element and the variation of the wood siding laying and colour.